The Sarno River, a protest of the bottled water users: "Clear water" in the canals against illegal dumping.

A small bottle of clear water poured into the Sarno River canals to denounce pollution. This unusual protest has become a social media challenge in recent weeks and a message from residents living along one of Campania's most troubled waterways.

The initiative started in Fosso Imperatore, in the area bordering Pagani and San Valentino Torio, in the province of Salerno, and then extended to the mouth of the river thanks to the mobilization of the Sarno Defense Network of Castellammare di Stabia.

Residents are also being pushed to protest by images of a blue liquid documented in the canals in recent weeks. Whether this is actually clear water or a substance linked to sewage and spills will need to be determined by the investigations requested by the residents themselves.

"We're living through a tragedy. From July to the end of September, we're forced to stay indoors; this isn't life," says Daniela, a resident on the banks of one of the Sarno River's tributaries. A situation that, according to residents, weighs especially heavily on the most vulnerable, including the elderly and cancer patients.

Orsola, on the other hand, remembers when Fosso Imperatore was very different. "Now it's a disaster. My grandchildren can't even play outside anymore. We're forced to wear masks like during the Covid era," she says, recalling the years when she used to go swimming in the canal as a child.

On the institutional front, the Campania Region has allocated over €400 million for the safety and remediation of the area. The most challenging issue, however, remains illegal dumping, which is difficult to detect and combat across a vast territory characterized by a dense network of canals.

According to Nocera Inferiore's prosecutor, Luigi Cannavale, controlling every possible illegal dumping is a real undertaking, requiring constant checks and extensive monitoring.

Meanwhile, some results have been achieved, as emphasized by Michele Strianese, mayor of San Valentino Torio and recently elected president of the Sarno River Regional Park.

"Thanks to the sewerage project, the river has been partially cleaned up. Obviously, there's still a huge amount of work to be done. We've asked for more monitoring and, at the same time, for more funding," Strianese explained.

The bottle protest aims to refocus attention on the situation in the Sarno, transforming a symbolic gesture into a specific demand: more inspections, a crackdown on illegal dumping, and new measures to restore residents to an environment they can live in without fear.